Prostate cancer is one of the leading causes of death in men in the United States. Recent studies suggest that the disproportionately higher incidence and mortality rate seen in African American men may be due to several factors including racial/ethnic differences in endogenous androgen levels and genetic polymorphisms such as that identified in the SRD5A2 gene which encodes for the 5alpha-reductase enzyme, an enzyme associated with the biosynthesis and metabolism of androgens in men and the 17-hydroxylase gene (CYP17). The Brodie laboratory has already synthesized over 300 novel potent androgen synthesis inhibitors with dual action against testicular 17alpha-hydroxylase/C[17,20] lyase and prostatic 5alpha-reductase that may serve as potential agents for treating androgen dependent prostate cancer. The overall purpose of the proposed pilot project is to identify and outline the effects of several of these novel inhibitors which have been shown to have the most potent effect on 5alpha-reductase in human prostate cancer cells. The efficacy of treatment will be determined by investigating proliferation, apoptosis and expression of androgen-dependent genes in human prostate tumor cells. This pilot project will establish necessary baseline data for conducting further experiments focusing on the genetic basis whereby certain therapies may have significant responses in African American men.